Football from Belle Époque till Globalization Dawn

Abstract

The article dwells on the material aspects of the economic history of sports of the late XIX century and first half of the XX century. Those aspects are analyzed on the example of the development of the French and international footballs market in the context of globalization involving a wide range of archival materials. The text combines several story lines: the evolution of the technology for the production of sporting shells from leather (which represented for a long time something intermediate between craft and industry) and its impact on the game itself, with a brief excursion into the technological history of the leather ball (standardization of dimensions and weight, care requirements for him, etc.), from the XVI century to modern high-tech production. Author highlights a significant segment of the sports business, its market, commercial and advertising strategies, forms of interaction with sports organizations, etc. The central place in the article occupies the history of the French market of fooballs, the relationship between the producers of balls and FIFA, as well as the procedure of selecting the "official ball" of football tournaments, including the World Cups. Author offers an explanation why the markets and ball-related industries remained national until the late 1960s. Then the era of global domination of adidas products began as a result of successful competition (with French firm 'Hungaria' among others rivals) that established adidas the first world brand of sports equipment and outfits. The conquest of the French market was the prelude to the era of a globalized football.